Horizontally mounted, rotating brushes are currently preferably used in large cleaning devices, which are used in particular in communal areas. Smaller, preferably hand-held cleaning devices with rotating brushes are used for applications in the household, preferably to free floor surfaces from dirt. Common to all of these devices is that they function like rotating brooms and the cleaning functions essentially to sweep the flooring surface. However, it is not possible to clean heavily soiled surfaces, in particular in the exterior area, or footpaths and terraces with lightly structured surfaces with these types of hand-held cleaning devices or large cleaning devices. In particular, cleaning of concrete, natural stone, smooth tile surfaces, and wooden decks in the exterior area cause problems during the cleaning of the surfaces.
To clean or remove contaminants, like dirt, moss, algae, or even paint from surfaces, e.g., wood, a mechanical floor processing is often required. To clean individual areas of the floor, e.g. the joints, or even areal processing of floor surfaces, it is necessary to work or clean the floors with different processing devices or cleaning and maintenance devices.
It is thus known, for example, that a joint brush may be used for cleaning joints. The joint brush is then, however, designed as an individual device so that processing an area, for example, flooring areas, is not possible for cleaning purposes.
Alternatively to cleaning with a joint brush, cleaning the joints might also be carried out using a high-pressure cleaning. This has the disadvantage, however, that joints may be damaged by the high pressure, water may penetrate into the joints, and dirt particles, like weeds or fibers may be churned up by the high pressure and spray out of the joints.
High-pressure cleaners with a protective cover are known as deck cleaners. These do not damage the wood surfaces; however, the cleaning effect in the grooves of wooden deck profiles is insufficient. In addition, dirt, algae, slime, and impurities are flooded into the joints of adjacent boards along with the sprayed water.
Rotating brushes are known from the prior art for processing surfaces. These have the disadvantage, however, on large surfaces which impede or even completely prevent the penetration of the brushes into irregularities in exposed concrete floors.
As previously described, paths, surfaces, and terraces in the house and garden may be cleaned in various ways. This includes the removal of weeds from joints, as well as moss and stubborn dirt from surfaces. The roller brushes known from the prior art may only sweep the surface dirt together. Sweeping machines are additionally used, which also have rotating circular brushes with an axis of rotation perpendicular to the surface for cleaning the surface. In these systems, the penetration depth is very low, since the brush lies completely on the surface. Joints are not able to be cleaned with such devices.
Using high-pressure cleaners known for joint cleaning, joints and surfaces may be simultaneously processed; however, the joints are completely washed out by the water jet, which is not desired when removing weeds. Furthermore, permanently cast joints are partially washed out be the hard water jet so that seeds may subsequently establish in the joints. A further disadvantage is the contamination of the environment by dirt particles loosened from the joints. Covers may be used to counter this; however, it is then no longer visible how far the jet washes out the joints. In addition, the water consumption is high.
Hand-held electric devices exist for mechanical cleaning of joints, which are generally equipped with a motor arranged at a right angle to a guide rod and a small disk brush, and are known for example from DE 203 21 268 U1 and DE 299 14 790 U1. However, these systems function with a speed of approximately 3000 rpm.
Another relevant document is DE 603 16 021 T2.
The systems functioning at high speeds have the disadvantage that the systems do not allow for a gentle cleaning.
An electrically driven gardening device is known from WO 2006/056313 A, which is used predominantly for cleaning the joints between laid slabs, for cleaning the slabs themselves, and for scarifying. The device shown in WO 2006/056313 A comprises at least one scarifying attachment and a brush wheel which is primarily used for joint cleaning. The scarifying attachment and the brush wheel are screwed onto a shaft and may be exchanged. A brush, in particular a roller brush with rotating brushes, is not shown in WO 2006/056313 A, nor is there any indication in WO 2006/056313 A how flooring surfaces, for example, paths and terraces, may be cleaned.
DE 90 00 712 U1 discloses a weed tiller for cleaning joints. The weed tiller known from DE 90 00 712 U1 is a hand-held cleaning device with a narrow wire brush which is mounted transversely and engages into the joints to be cleaned of weeds. The narrow wire brush, mounted transversely, is driven by a motor fixed on the guide rod. Neither an exchangeability nor a roller brush is shown in DE 90 00 712 U1.
DE 10 2008 006 318 B3 describes a joint cleaning machine for paved surfaces comprising a housing and a rotor located on an axis. Furthermore, the machine comprises an electric motor with a shaft for driving a disk brush and a strut with a handle assigned to the housing. The shaft of the electric motor is arranged in a direction transverse to the vertical plane and inclined in such a way to the drive direction of the machine that the disk brush fixed on the shaft may have a specified inclined position to the joints of the paved surface. The electric motor is mounted on the housing to be movable in the direction of the vertical plane. A roller brush for cleaning areas is likewise not shown in DE 10 2008 006 318 B3.
DE 195 05 156 A1 describes a hand-held motorized universal device, which is particularly suitable for floor cleaning, for removing leaves and snow in the area of the garden and for yard care. It comprises an internal combustion or electric motor and a rod or strut, equipped with handles, which supports a transmission on the lower end which may be equipped with exchangeable tools, rotating around their horizontal axis, in particular with cutting tools and with rotating brooms. The different rotational orientations of the tools required for the various operations are achieved by pivoting the rod or by rotating the rod or the transmission about an angle of 180° to the rod axis.
The broom known from DE 195 05 156 A1 is, however, not comparable to a roller brush, as it may remove loose dirt from a surface, however, it may not clean it. In particular, it is not possible to remove, for example, moss or algae from a wood floor with a broom.